Negative. That was the “verdict” delivered in the US by the special counsel Moeller charged to investigate whether Donald Trump’s presidential campaign colluded with the Russians to win the election.

Democrats declared they would continue to press with the story. Strong suspicions about what happened remain, they claimed, though endowed with very powerful investigative powers, Mueller had been conducting his inquiry for almost two years.

I do not like Trump at all. Still there is no pointer to Moeller being some double dealer. Since he has been on the job, on different grounds from those that were predicated for the original inquiry, he had hung leading collaborators of the American President out to dry. That Moeller decided the way he did appears to me to be a hugely significant factor.

It all reminded me of how here in Malta, people who detest Prime Minister Muscat built their attacks on the Egrant case. They trid to keep on banging at it even after the whole story collapsed.

What is one to believe in life? Would you believe claims that have been investigated and found not to cohere with the facts?  Should you go on believing what it pleases you to believe, no matter what and at all costs?

***

At Birżebbuġa

Last Sunday at Birżebbuġa, despite the beautiful sunny weather, it was still difficult to overlook the cranes and machinery at the Freeport. They dominate the landscape. Compared to them, even the enormous ship which stores the gas supplies that feed the power station actually seems quite unimpressive.

There is no doubt that as a project, the Freeport has been and remains a commercial success, bringing much business to the country.

Equally, there is no doubt that B’bugia and its residents have had to pay a stiff price for this outcome. It changed the character of the locality and brought with it the inconveniences associated with any huge industrial initative.

I always considered that because of this, B’bugia deserved special treatment. New projects that compensate for the environmental damage inflicted on it need to be backed on an ongoing basis.

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“Ġensna”

“Ġensna” the rock opera has become a legend and is still received with massive enthusiasm whenever new versions of the show are put on. Other operas that came out in imitation never came close to its popularity.

What accounts for this popularity?

The show was criticised on the grounds that it really served as agit prop intended to boost the vision of the then Labour government. It was launched in the beginning of the 1980s when tremendous political controversies were the order of the day, following the anomalous election result of 1981. Effectively however the opera’s themes relate more closely to the events of 1979, when British troops definitely left their Malta station. Politically “Ġensna” can be seen as a rumbustious celebration of that event. In favour of the latter, there wasn’t just the political left, but also factions on the right who though they kept silent, had always wanted Independence to become total with the final departure of the British.

But these could be points that over emphasize the show’s political aspects. “Ġensna”’s major merit is that its music is melodious to the core. That’s the other reason why its popularity has endured.